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Scientists are working on a drug to mimic exercise

Drugs specially designed to mimic the molecular benefits of exercise could soon become a reality, according to scientists from the University of Sydney.

New research published in the journal Cell Metabolism has revealed that around 1,000 molecular changes occur in our muscles when we workout. Now these changes have been identified, scientists effectively have an exercise "blueprint".

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Scientists could soon be able to use this blueprint that details the molecular reactions to exercise to single out the most important changes and start replicating them with the help of drugs. This means that we could soon get all of the benefits of exercise without having to even work up a sweat.

Professor David James, head of the research group that undertook the study, explained, "Exercise is the most powerful therapy for many human diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and neurological disorders." "However, for many people, exercise isn’t a viable treatment option," James continued. "This means it is essential we find ways of developing drugs that mimic the benefits of exercise."

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The researchers from the University of Sydney have been working alongside researchers from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark to create the blueprint. They collected all of the data by analysing human skeletal muscle biopsies from untrained, healthy males following ten minutes of exercise and using a technique called mass spectrometry to study protein phosphorylation. This is when they discovered that, after exercise, more than 1,000 changes take place at a molecular level.

Until now very few of these changes had been associated with exercise. "While scientists have long suspected that exercise causes a complicated series of changes to human muscle, this is the first time we have been able to map exactly what happens," explained research co-author Dr Nolan Hoffman. "This is a major breakthrough, as it allows scientists to use this information to design a drug that mimics the true beneficial changes caused by exercise," he added.

Creating the drug isn’t going to be simple and according to Hoffman it could take "at least a decade" because any kind of medication will need to target multiple molecules at the same time. However, this recent research has certainly been a step in the right direction. "Our data clearly show the complexity of the response: it is not one thing, but rather the drug will have to target multiple things. Our research has provided the roadmap to figure this out," said professor James.